Macworld 2011 news: dates announced for 2012, event’s future grows
January 25, 2011 by Beatweek · Leave a Comment
Remember when Apple pulled out of Macworld Expo, and it was supposed to wither and die shortly thereafter? Think again. Macworld 2010 took on a new, more community-focused (and app-focused) direction and was ultimately one of the more energetic Macworlds in recent memory. This week Macworld 2011 is set to see if it can sustain last year’s momentum, which caught more than a few observers off guard. And in an early sign that Macworld is indeed on the right track, those who picked up their conference badges today were treated to a ‘save the date’ for the next Macworld. On the rear of the badge it reads “See you next year! January 26-28, 2012.”
So much for the notion that the most (arguably only) vital annual event in the Apple community couldn’t survive without Apple’s direct participation. The Beatweek team is onsite at Macworld 2011 this week and will be covering the most noteworthy products (apps, accessories, and who knows what else) introduced at the show.
U2′s Bono injures back, has surgery, tour date(s) postponed
May 23, 2010 by Beatweek · Leave a Comment
U2 lead singer Bono, who turned fifty earlier this month, received a terrible belated birthday present when he injured his back and had to have emergency surgery to compensate. The incident occurred just as the band was gearing up to continue with its U2 360 tour and forced the postponement of the band’s Salt Lake City concert. U2′s manager, Paul McGuinness, released a statement on the band’s official site U2.com in which he stated that “The band were really looking forward to getting back out on the road until the emergency surgery on Bono’s back, which took place in Munich.”
It’s not yet clear what kind of impact Bono’s surgery and recuperation will have on the U2 360 tour schedule, but given the medical severity of the situation, it seems likely that more than just the Salt Lake City date will end up going by the wayside for the time being. U2 had been touring in support of its latest album No Line On The Horizon, which was released just over a year ago.
Macworld 2011 to include Microsoft, HP, OWC, Dr. Bott, Monster, more
May 4, 2010 by Beatweek · Leave a Comment
After a highly successful 2010 event in February which caught some observers by surprise, IDG has begun releasing details for Macworld 2011. While the event will once again not include the participation of Apple itself, several heavy hitters from the Macintosh (plus iPhone, iPad, iPod) universe have officially signed on to participate in the 2011 show, which will take place in late January in San Francisco.
Chief among the announced exhibitors is Microsoft which, while seen as an Apple rival in some aspects, provides Macintosh users with a Mac version of its Office suite. Also on board is Hewlett Packard which, again despite being one of Apple’s rivals in the computer market, is also one of the primary providers of printers to the Mac market. Additional returning exhibitors include accessory distributor Dr. Bott; headphone makers Monster and Sennheiser, plus accessory makers Scosche; Other World Computing, FastMac, Mophie, and Trexta; Mac software makers SmileOnMyMac, OmniGroup, and MacSpeech; and technology titan Fujitsu. The published list does not include iPhone app developers, who made up the largest group of new Macworld exhibitors this past year.
Macworld 2010 saw an exhibit hall which was crowded almost to the point of annoyance, along with feature presentations from David Pogue, Leo Laporte, director Kevin Smith, musician BT, and Daring Fireball’s John Gruber. While some had preemptively written off the 2010 event due to Apple’s lack of participation, the six hundred journalists in attendance generally agreed that the event was an all around success.
The published dates for Macworld 2011 are January 25th through 29th. Registration for the expo has not yet opened.
Alice in Chains to tour with Deftones
April 30, 2010 by Beatweek · Leave a Comment
The newly reunited Alice in Chains is set to tour this fall after releasing their latest latest album Black Gives Way To Blue last fall, and the Seattle alternative rock pioneers will be taking Deftones with them, the latter gearing up for the release of their new album Diamond Eyes next Tuesday. The tour will kick of September 16th in Chicago and wrap up a month later in Las Vegas, with a stop at New York City’s Madison Square Garden in between. The high profile venue represents a triumphant comeback for Alice in Chains, the Seattle foursome who lost original lead singer Layne Staley to heroin addiction several years ago, which scuttled the group at the time. However, the addition of new singer William Duvall (along with increased vocal duties from founding guitarist/vocalist Jerry Cantrell) has put the band back on the map, including a Grammy nomination earlier this year. Also joining Alice in Chains and Deftones on the “BlackDiamondSkye” tour will be Mastodon.
The good news, however, for Alice in Chains fans who don’t want to have wait for the BlackDiamondSkye tour is that they don’t have to; the band is currently in the midst of its own tour which sees it performing in Alabama tonight as part of a string of current tour dates which run through July 18th. Full list of Alice in Chains tour dates is available on the band’s official website.
Train to perform “Hey, Soul Sister” on Regis today
April 19, 2010 by Beatweek · Leave a Comment
Train, the San Francisco based band who are seeing their biggest chart success in years with current single “Hey, Soul Sister” will be performing the song on Regis and Kelly this morning. The band, who’ve scored hits over the years with songs such as Drops of Jupiter and Calling All Angels, have named their latest album Save Me, San Francisco in honor of their hometown.
Today’s television performance precedes a marathon touring effort which will kick off April 30th in Oklahoma and run non stop through September 4th in Illinois, with tour dates on both coasts in between plus a side trip to Australia and New Zealand in June.
Train previously performed “Hey, Soul Sister” on CSI: New York, with lead singer Pat Monahan portraying a fictional singer in the accompanying episode.
Sharon Osbourne will also appear on the Regis episode.
V.V. Brown tour dates announced
April 18, 2010 by Beatweek · Leave a Comment
V.V. Brown, the rising UK pop star whose February digital release of her debut album Travelling Like The Light has boosted her U.S. profile to the extent that she was invited to perform her hit single “Shark In The Water” on The Ellen Show this past week, has announced a handful of headlining tour dates including New York City’s Bowery Ballroom on April 28th, UC San Diego on May 10th, The Troubadour in Los Angeles on May 12th (editor’s note: this is a tiny venue, start working to get tickets now if you hope to attend), and finally at the Basilica Block Party in Minneapolis on July 10th.
For those who still love their CD collection, Travelling Like The Light finally comes out in physical format this Tuesday, April 20th. Beatweek spoke with V.V. Brown about her album earlier this year; you can read the full interview here.
Iceland volcano grounds UK band
As if to remind us all that there are bigger things going on than within the confines of the entertainment industry, volcanic ash from the recent eruption in Iceland has ground flights in surrounding nations, causing at least one UK-based band to have to give up on a U.S. tour date. The group known as “Los Campesinos!” was forced to postpone its planned weekend gigs in New York and New Jersey because band members couldn’t get a flight out of the UK in time. However, the Jersey show has been rescheduled for Wednesday, and the rest of the tour appears to be intact.
Los campesinos!, the seven-member welsh outfit who released their sophomore album Romance Is Boring in February, will continue in the U.S. through San Diego in May (full tour dates here).
The pair of Icelandic volcano eruptions this past week have had societal and economic impacts worldwide.
Soundgarden concert tonight in Seattle
Those who’ve been waiting twelve years (and that includes us) to finally see a reunited Soundgarden in concert won’t have to wait as long as originally expected. While the band has already confirmed a headlining slot at August’s Lollapalooza 2010, Billboard is reporting that Soundgarden will perform a show tonight in its native Seattle, at the Showbox at the Market.
Still no word on whether there will be a new album, or what the band’s 2010 tour plans might look like beyond the Lolla gig, but the mere fact that Soundgarden is performing somewhere in the world tonight leaves us with good feelings. The band is also giving away free tickets via its Twitter page. If any fans make it into the show, be sure to let us know how it went.
Update: a few minutes after posting this, we received additional information about tonight’s show directly from Soundgarden itself: “Please leave your camera and video recorders in the dungeon. There will be a VERY LIMITED number of tickets available. All tickets sold on line. No tickets available at the door. All tickets are will call only.”
photo courtesy SoundgardenWorld.com
Adam Lambert discusses “extensive” U.S. summer tour
April 14, 2010 by Beatweek · Leave a Comment
After concluding an international press tour this past month and appearing on American Idol this week as contestant mentor and performer, Adam Lambert will turn his attention to launching the long awaited summer tour that his fans in the U.S. have been clamoring for. While the dates aren’t yet set, Lambert told Beatweek about his plans for the shows, which he describes as “atmospheric”:
“As far as I’m concerned, they aren’t necessarily arenas,” Lambert tells Beatweek. “But I’m gonna pull out all the stops for the production values as best I can. I think I’m gonna try to make it theatrical, environmental, and interactive, something that people who know the album will love, but then people who don’t know the album will really enjoy it as well.”
As for the length of his U.S. tour: “It’s gonna be pretty extensive,” Lambert says, “as far as how many dates we’re going.”
Adam Lambert is on the cover of the current issue of Beatweek Magazine, in which he discusses his debut album For Your Entertainment, his choice of singles, and why he’s chosen to return to American Idol this week.
The full Adam Lambert interview can also be found here.
Soundgarden, Lady GaGa, Green Day to headline Lollapalooza 2010
April 6, 2010 by Beatweek · Leave a Comment
Soundgarden, who announced its reunion on New Years Day of this year, has finally announced a scheduled live performance – and it’s a doozy. According to official site SoundgardenWorld.com, the band will be one of this year’s headliners at Lollapalooza, scheduled to take place in early August in Chicago. Lollapalooza’s official site confirms the news, and drops two more bombshells for headliners: Green Day and Lady GaGa. The three headliners are rife with Lolla history, as Soundgarden joined the Lollapalooza tour in 1992 and again in 1996 (Chris Cornell’s Audioslave made a return engagement in 2003), Green Day headlined in 1994, and in a sign of just how quickly she’s risen from obscurity, Lady GaGa performed on Lollapalooza’s BMI side stage in 2007.
This year’s Lolla lineup also includes Arcade Fire, Phoenix, The Strokes, Cypress Hill, The Black Keys, MGMT, Spoon, and dozens of others. Lollapalooza founder Perry Farrell will host “Spinning At Perry’s” during which he will perform himself.
Interestingly missing from the Lollapalooza 2010 lineup: Chicago’s own reincarnated Smashing Pumpkins, and Farrell’s own Jane’s Addiction.
The full Lollapalooza lineup can be found here.
Lady GaGa appeared on the cover of Beatweek Magazine in 2009. You can read our full cover story interview with Lady GaGa here.
U2 to release concert DVD
April 2, 2010 by Beatweek · Leave a Comment
Those who missed the world’s biggest band on its U2360° tour, or who want to relive it again and again, are in luck as U2 is set to release its 2009 Rose Bowl performance on DVD and Blu-Ray on June 3rd. The date is (not) coincidentally the same day in which U2 will kick off its 2010 touring schedule with a show in Salt Lake City that night. before spending the rest of the summer touring North America and Europe.
The Pasadena show includes songs from the band’s latest album No Line On The Horizon such as “Get On Your Boots” and “Magnificent” while also including mid period hits like “One” and “Mysterious Ways” and going back in time with classics like “Where The Streets Have No Name” and “Sunday Bloody Sunday.” Curiously missing? 1984′s epic “Pride (In The Name Of Love).”
No word yet on DVD pricing, or whether the show will also be made available in digital formats such as iTunes. There is, however, a trailer available for viewing.
Full 2010 tour dates are available at U2.com.
Thirty Seconds To Mars tours, covers Lady GaGa
April 1, 2010 by Beatweek · Leave a Comment
Thirty Seconds To Mars, who topped the charts in December with their release of their third album This Is War, are returning from the European leg of their tour and will kick off their U.S. tour on April 9th in Las Vegas before circling the country and finishing up in Arizona in May.
Founded by brothers Jared Leto and Shannon Leto in 1998, Thirty Seconds To Mars is touring on the strength of This Is War lead single Kings And Queens and has just released the album’s title track as a second single.
The band also recently covered Bad Romance by Lady GaGa during a recent live performance on the BBC, in an avant garde performance that has to be heard to be believed.
For full tour dates, see ThirtySecondsToMars.com.
A Fine Frenzy hits LA, Lilith, Europe
March 26, 2010 by Beatweek · Leave a Comment
A Fine Frenzy, fronted by singer/pianist Alison Sudol, has booked an April 2010 residency at Largo in Los Angeles. Songs performed will almost certainly include cuts from the outfit’s 2009 album Bomb in a Birdcage among others. Additional performances will include a stint on the 2010 incarnation of Lilith Fair along with European dates in May 2010 with Owl City.
Alison Sudol discussed Bomb in a Birdcage, whether “A Fine Frenzy” is her stage name or her band’s name, and life with a million-plus Twitter followers in her September 2009 interview with Beatweek.
Learn more at AFineFrenzy.com.
